Page 1 of Ghost

Prologue

Something breaks inside a man when he watches the casket close on his own flesh and blood. He can try to put the pieces back together. I certainly did, but they no longer fit.

My ears were still ringingwith the sounds of the crash when Seven walked into my hospital room. I wasn’t exactly surprised to see him. We were long time friends, and he knew I hadn’t been right in the head. “What the hell, man?”

“I know. I know. I fucked up.”

“That’s a fucking understatement.”

Seven walked over to my hospital bed and shook his head when he saw just how bad things really were. I’d broken my arm and had a severe concussion. There was a thick, white bandage wrapped around my head, concealing the stitches, but it did little to hide the fact that my face was black and blue, and my eyes were practically swollen shut.

I was lucky.

I hit a telephone pole and was thrown through the windshield.

I could’ve hit someone—killed them and myself. I wouldn’t have been all that bothered with the latter. Hell, it had crossed my mind more times than I could count.

“So, after two fucking tours in Iraq where we fought every fucking day to see the next sunrise, this is how you’re gonna go out?” he snapped. “What the hell where you thinking? Drinking and driving. Have you lost your fucking mind? You could’ve gotten yourself killed or worse. You could’ve killed someone else.”

“I know. I know. It was a dumb move.” I let out a defeated sigh. “I went to see Tracy.”

“Ah, damn. Why the fuck would you go and do that?”

“I guess I’m just a glutton for punishment.”

Seven and I had served together, and while out on patrol, we talked. Hell, we talked a lot. He knew my history with her, so I wasn’t surprised when he said, “Well, you had to know that was a bad idea.”

“I did, but I needed to see her.” I shifted slightly and winced when the movement sent a sharp pain through my arm. “I needed to know that she was okay.”

“And?”

“Oh, she was okay.” My voice was strained as I told him, “Hell, she was more than okay. She’s remarried and has a kid on the way.”

“It’s been five years, brother. It’s not crazy to think she would’ve moved on.”

“Five years is a fucking blink!” I started stammering with emotion. “How could she just forget what happened?”

“I don’t know, man, but she let it go and you’re gonna have to do the same.”

“How the hell am I supposed to do that?” I grabbed my phone and threw it across the room. “My head is full of all thesefucking memories, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t shake ‘em. Hell, I see his face every time I close my eyes.”

“You can’t keep going on like this.”

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.”

“Come to the clubhouse. I’m tellin’ ya. It’ll change everything.”

“I don’t know, man. I know it’s your thing now, but I just don’t think that biker shit is for me.”

“You’re wrong.” He sounded like he truly meant it when he said, “That sense of brotherhood we had in our platoon isn’t gone. And that adrenaline rush we got when we were on a mission, it’s still out there. You just gotta take a chance, and you’ll see for yourself that these guys are the real deal.”

“I haven’t ridden since I was a kid.”

“Doesn’t matter. Once a rider, always a rider.” He studied me for a moment, then gave me one last push. “So, what’s it gonna be? You gonna piss your life away with booze and bad choices, or are you gonna pull your head out of your ass and start living again?”

“I guess I’m running out of choices here. I can’t keep doing this. What do I gotta do?”

“You just gotta show up.”

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